The Carousel
by Roaming Writer
Summary: Forbidden Love is a classic trope of any good love story. Before love can become a healthy relationship, both lovers need to be willing to love each other despite what their loved ones or the world tells them. "My bounty is as boundless as the sea, My love as deep; the more I give to thee, The more I have, for both are infinite." ― William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet


Lights, music, laughter filled the nighttime air with pure joy. I scanned around, eyeballing the map to figure out where I was. These stupid pictures make it so hard to read. My fingers were freezing too.

I could hardly believe it was Rapunzel's first time at a Halloween carnival. After all, it felt like just yesterday she was locked in that tower. Yet… nothing about her was different. Sure, she was more confident now but she still held that same curiosity and wonderful outlook on life. I smiled at the memory of Rapunzel's first day in the palace. When she arrived at the palace, she ran around the halls greeting every maid and servant, unaware of her higher status. Of course, she became an instant favorite and even unknowingly attracted the eyes of some young male apprentices, of course against my whim.

"Wow! Have you seen anything like this in Corona?" she spun around under the intense torches that lit up the night around the carnival, spreading snow around her pink wool dress.

"Well, I've seen a few carnival parks back in the day when I was still on the road," I gestured to the horizon with an open palm.

"Can you tell me what it was like?" she asked, her voice filled with curiosity.

"Well, the booth masters at carnivals are richer and more of a thief than even the best bandits in the world, I'll tell you that much."

One eyebrow shot up and her arms crossed her petite body. "Thieves? Are you sure we should be here?"

"No," I chuckle, realizing that she had no knowledge about how carnivals work. "not actual thieves, but they have they always try to scam you out of your money with these practically impossible carnival games"

"Ohh come on Eugene. I won the Challenge of the Brave with Cassandra remember? I'm sure a few games won't be that bad!"

"Oh you have no id—"

"Eugene! Look at this!" she dragged me so quickly he hardly had time to utter a word. When she wanted something she always seemed to get it!

Rapunzel darted towards a booth that was ornately decorated with giant stuffed chameleons. It was a mini shooting range, one of the classic scams where the bottles never fell over. The man behind the counter looked at us with a false smile, trying to draw us into his trap.

"Step riighht up ya two love birds. Win one round and ya git a niiice big prize fo ya girl," he loudly proclaimed.

Rapunzel's grin spread across her face as she turned towards me. "Eugene, we have to play!" She stared at me with her puppy dog Rapunzel eyes and I felt them tug at every fiber of my heart. I couldn't say no.

"Alright, I'll give it a shot."

She let a shriek of joy as she jumped into my embrace, nearly toppling me over onto the snow. I took out a silver coin and placed it onto the counter, only to be met with a harsh glare.

"Pretty boy, ya owe me two more silver coins buddy."

"Three coins?" I exclaimed. "That's robbery."

He leaned over the counter until I could see his nose hairs and smell his bad breath. "No. It's business. Now pay up or git yer sorry butt outta here."

I felt a tug at my sleeve, it was Rapunzel. "Eugene it's fine if it's too expensive. We can look at the other stuff in the carnival"

My mouth bent into a confident smirk, "No, I don't back down from a challenge Sunshine."

I turned my attention back to him. I wanted to punch him square in his crooked teeth, but I composed myself and mustered up two more coins. It's ridiculous all the things I do for love. The booth master presented me with a pellet rifle and pointed down the range at 3 metal bottles. "Knock them down," he explained, "and you can win a stuffed chameleon."

I felt the fake leather grip and the cheap wooden underbarrel of the gun. True, it was not the best rifle I held before but my sharpshooting experience might still pay off. I held up the gun, aiming it down range.

"Remember boy, only 4 shots," he reminded me.

I aimed at the center of the rightmost bottle, and pulled my trigger instinctively. Sure enough, the shot hit dead center but the bottle hardly budged, and didn't topple over. Crap. This game is definitely rigged. I saw the vendor smile as he played with my coins in his hands. The bottles were weighted down. That's why they didn't topple over. I had to hit the top of bottles to get enough torque to topple them.

"Three shots left," he announced.

So I aimed and instinctively I locked onto my target and pulled the trigger, this time hitting the top of the bottle clean and knocking over the middle bottle.

"Oh, ya got lucky din't ya? Two shots left," he chided.

This time, I aimed at the leftmost bottle, which was about a foot closer than the one in the middle and shot, knocking over the bottle with ease.

The vendor's eyebrows rose in surprise.

I steadied my hand and held my breath to steady the aiming reticle. I aimed at the skinny top of the right bottle. It was a small bottleneck and it was a hard shot but I saw, out of the corner of my eye, Rapunzel smiling and cheering me on with a few fist raises. I beamed back at her and then focused my attention on the bottle. It was lined up. My finger was itching on the trigger. My last shot. And ding. The last bottle fell over, and there was a slight expression of shock on the man's face. He reluctantly reached for a stuffed chameleon plush and handed it to Rapunzel, who eagerly grabbed it close to her heart.

"That was amazing Eugene!" she squealed with joy. "When did you learn to shoot like that?" she said, her arms still clutching the chameleon tight.

"You know, for a thief I was always known as the most handsome sharpshooter out there," I bragged, pursing my lips into my signature smolder.

"Well, I'm glad that you're my handsome sharpshooter," she said, wrapping my arm in her soft caress.

I bent down and planted a kiss on the top of her blonde head. She didn't say a word, but her radiant smile told me everything i needed to know.

As we made our way through the carnival, people began to recognize the princess and sure enough she drew a small crowd of costumed children who were dressed as, ironically, Princess Rapunzel for the Halloween celebration. Rapunzel greeted every child with a warm hug and would spend minutes at a time conversing with them about their Halloween antics (as she was new to the holiday). The kids meanwhile, questioned her about her "prince," which was when she would sneak a glance at my direction and would astound them by telling the kids that her prince used to be a swashbuckling pirate. Of course that wasn't true but I let it slide on the account that I did want to be a pirate as a kid. The night was getting late and children ran up to her, talking about their jack o lanterns and whatnot. I saw, watching her enthusiasm rub off on the kids. I couldn't help but imagine our kids someday. Rapunzel would be a great mother and wife, I thought, wondering what my future with her could be like.

Rapunzel, being as curious as she was, continued to stop at every booth, trying a bit of the Halloween treats like the candy corn and caramel apples. Most of the time, they gave it to her gratis on the account of her being a princess and all. But it was when we reached the colorful blue and pink cotton candy cart that Rapunzel really got excited. It was right next to the carousel which only made it more popular, evident by the small line that formed in front of the vendor.

"Wow! Eugene what is that?"

I tried to hold back my smile, I didn't want to tease her again about her inexperience at carnivals. After all, who doesn't know what cotton candy is?

"Rapunzel, you do know what cotton candy is right?"

"Cotton candy? Never tried it before," Rapunzel answered quizzically.

I handed the vendor a few coins and I saw him whisk up clouds of candy that just seemed to dance around the cone by themselves. Watching the colorful swirls was worth the money itself. He handed me the cone, which held cotton candy the size of my head.

I reached for Rapunzel's mitten-covered hands. "Just let it melt in your mouth," I pressed my face into the candy, letting the sugar crystallize on my tongue, the sweet sensation flooded with the cold brisk air. She joined in, and I saw her eyes widen as she gave it a try.

"Mmm, it's soo sweet," she mumbled, as she pulled her head out from the pink and blue candy. She giggled and radiated pure joy.

"Are you happy Rapunzel?"

She was taken aback by the abrupt question. "Happy? Of course I am Eugene."

I thought about what happened back there with the children. "I've been thinking about our future together."

"Now that we live in the palace, we can be together," she answered matter-of-factly.

"No," I felt myself get agitated. "I mean the future of our relationship." I remembered the day of the coronation when Rapunzel rejected my marriage plea. It hurt me so much and I felt so unsure about where fate would lead us. "Back there, when I saw you with the children, I just wanted to know if you want to start a family someday."

"Well of course I do, but…" she turned her gaze away, fiddling with her mittens. "I just don't know if I'm ready yet."

I ran my hand through her hair, taking away the bits of cotton candy that stuck onto her blonde locks. I leaned closer into her and I didn't realize how close I was. My mind was racing. I couldn't take my eyes off her. My heart was beating faster. She was gorgeous and I had to catch my breath for a second. The lights on the carousel spun around, forming beautiful patterns of light nearby. We had been together for about 6 months now yet I still felt electrified at times when I was with her. This was one of those times.

"...Eugene?" she blushed pink, her head slightly timidly bowed.

"Rapunzel," Without hesitation, I gently lifted her chin with a finger and pulled her into me, pressing her warm lips onto mine for a quick kiss. Her hot breath pushed all the coldness away from my face. It was magical. "I love you," I finished.

When she pulled away, my body jumped into instinct and my hands spun around her waist and pulled her back into another kiss. I opened my mouth, and Rapunzel let out a small moan of pleasure before opening her mouth. She tasted like cotton candy. I felt sparks passing through our body, as if we were speaking without truly uttering a single word. Those sparks told me about Rapunzel, about her pains and sorrow. My hands traced her slim torso and before I knew it, we were against a wall, our bodies intertwined in the dance of love. I felt my inner flame burn brighter, no longer restrained as they had been in the past. I remember when the king almost killed me after she asked if she could sleep with me in my bed . Before the king could verbalize his suddenly intense scowl, I reassured him that I had not laid a finger on her and that she was just not used to societal implications. But now, it felt different. We were not in the palace anymore. We were no longer restrained by anyone. I held her hands close to her sides and… no…

I stopped, and took my weight off of her. I backed away a little and took a deep breath. What was I doing?! Idiot! I should've never done that!

Rapunzel was breathing slightly heavier, clouds of steamy warm air gushing out of her mouth. I was breathless too, aware of how bold and reckless I was. Her eyes looked into mine. Her emerald eyes glistened with tears. No.

"I- I'm sorry," I apologize. I couldn't bear to look at her. How could I be so stupid? The night was going perfectly well until…. until that!

She was quiet, too quiet. The only audible noise was her irregular breathing. I held her close to me again, feeling her emotional turmoil.

"Eugene," she limply shook her head. "I'm sorry I just don't know how I feel." Her hair was messily strewn over her face, obstructing her face of any emotion.

I held her hand tightly, making sure she doesn't fall away from me. "Rapunzel, you know I love you and I would never purposely do anything to hurt you or make you feel uncomfortable," I pleaded. "I won't ever do it again." I wanted her to forgive me.

"No," she sighed. "It wasn't bad. It felt so right when we were together" she closed her eyes. "But it was wrong. Father told me about men who—" she cut herself off.

I knew what she was going to say. It hurt me that she thought about such a scenario. "No! I would never—"

"Yes, I know Eugene. But what would my parents say?"

"I don't know Rapunzel," I answered. Truth was, I knew the king would be furious and I'd be executed if he found out what happened. We weren't on best terms yet anyways. "But one thing I do know is that it doesn't matter what your parents say. My love for you is as boundless as your beauty and love for adventure." I felt my nose get stuffy and I felt the wells of my eyes start to tear up. "I would live for you Rapunzel, and then I would die for you knowing that my life was worth living just with you. I will prove myself to the King and even till the end, whatever he says will not lessen the tenderness I feel for you." The tears cascaded down my face. "You don't deserve me," I muttered. I closed my eyes, waiting for her to tell me that I was too eager, too boorish for her. I waited for her to tell me that she would break up with me, that the stunt I pulled today was crazy.

But instead, I felt her lips again, this time she lifted herself up on her toes and pressed them against mine, wiping my tears with her mittens. I opened my eyes and her head was beside my collarbone. "Eugene, please don't leave me. Ever."

"I will always be beside you Blondie. You know that."

"Yes. I do."

I felt a weight being lifted from my soul, as if that nagging question was ripped from my mind and replaced with the most beautiful answer. I didn't deserve that. I didn't deserve someone as wonderful, loving, and forbearing as her. Even in the darkest depths of confusion and anguish, I knew that Rapunzel would be my light. Even in the midst of nightmares and petrifying thoughts, she was my new dream. With this, I felt content.

"Hey," I asked, trying to lighten up the mood, "Follow me."

She took my hand and we made our way to the carousel. When we stepped on the platform, we began to move along with the rides, slowly spinning around in a circle. In front of us was a white marble carousel horse imprinted with the Corona sun signia. I helped Rapunzel up onto the horse and I sat right behind her. My arms were around her waist and her hands were on top of mine. "Today was amazing", she said, resting her head beside my heart.

"Yes it was, being with you." The horses continued to bounce up and down as we continued to move in an endless cycle. I wanted my life with Rapunzel to be like this: unchanging. There were always the same horses and the same lights. And that's the nice thing about carousels, you always know what's going to happen. I suppose that life could never be so consistent. Yet it made me so hopeful seeing the possibilities of our love. Truly, this pure joy, this love is unique.


End file.
